San Bernardino’s charter will be changed by voter approval to give the elected sheriff and district attorney a $100,000 pay increase, ending over a decade of diminishing pay for their positions.
San Bernardino voters approved Measure L 63% to 37%, or 241,000 to 143,000.
The measure would also lock in base funding for sheriff’s deputies patrolling in the county’s unincorporated areas by preventing any reduction in funding from the previous year.
“With Measure L, we can reinforce our commitment to providing effective law enforcement services across the county, improving response times, and ensuring that our deputies have the resources necessary to keep our communities safe. This investment in public safety underscores the value that our residents place on security and stability, especially in our unincorporated areas, where resources are often more limited,” wrote San Bernardino Sheriff Shannon Dicus in a press release.
District Attorney Jason Anderson declined to comment after the election ended, but he had made his case for the measure in an earlier Follow Our Courts interview: The measure’s focus was to ensure adequate law enforcement, but it also was time for a raise due to a stagnating pay and increasing inflation, he had said.
“Asking for a pay raise, I don’t think is unreasonable,” Anderson said.
Since 2011, San Bernardino sheriff’s and elected DA’s pay have fallen $80,000 in value due to inflation, according to public records.
Because San Bernardino is a charter county, their salaries can be changed only at the consent of voters.
Prior to Measure L passing, their salaries were determined by finding the average base pay to their counterparts in Kern, Riverside, San Diego, Orange and Ventura counties. Now, their salaries will be determined by finding the average total pay of their counterparts in Los Angeles, Riverside, San Diego, Orange and Ventura counties Those counterparts have been receiving higher total pay, through bonuses, because their salaries do not have to be decided by voters, Anderson said.
“It appears to be a windfall, but if you compare it with the increase in salaries over the last 10 years of similarly situated people, my salary doesn’t even come close,” Anderson had said.
